Daily Sports Capsule

*Index*
GOLF	BASEBALL	HOCKEY	FOOTBALL
BOXING	AUTO RACING	TENNIS	LOCAL

GOLF

Fred Funk shot a 67 yesterday to increase his lead to three strokes after the second round of the $1.5 million Buick Challenge in Pine Mountain, Ga. Funk, who nearly withdrew with a sore back before Thursday's opening round, held off the challenge of Steve Flesch and D.A. Weibring. Flesch, who shot a 66, was three shots back at 133, tied with Weibring, who had a 65. ... There are 99 sand traps at Tanglewood Park's course in Clemmons, N.C. If you ask Brian Barnes, he was in every one of them yesterday in the first round of the $1.5 million Vantage Championship. But the 53-year-old golfer from England overcame a miserable driving day with good bunker play and a hot putter to share the opening-day lead with Bud Allin and Ray Floyd at 6-under-par 64 in the Senior PGA Tour's fourth-richest event.

BASEBALL

John Boles began his second stint as the Florida Marlins' manager yesterday, and this time he's likely to keep the job longer than half a season. Barely 24 hours after Jim Leyland resigned, the Marlins signed Boles to a three-year contract. Boles, who has been with the organization since 1991, went 40-35 as interim manager in 1996 after Florida fired Rene Lachemann. The 50-year-old Boles takes over a team that lost 108 games this year, the most in the National League since 1969.

HOCKEY

The Pittsburgh Penguins and former All-Star center Mario Lemieux agreed to talk about their $33 million contract dispute instead of arbitrating it and settled some of their differences yesterday. Lemieux has contended that Penguins co-owner Roger Marino is cheating him out of the rest of the $42 million deal he had signed with the other co-owner, Howard Baldwin, in 1992. The deal called for Lemieux to be paid whether or not he played hockey. A back injury and cancer of the lymph nodes led to Lemieux's retirement after the 1996-97 season.

FOOTBALL

The Tennessee Oilers have applied for trademarks for seven new nicknames: the Pioneers, Tradition, Fury, Wolves, Vipers, Commandos and Presidents. Team owner Bud Adams said earlier this year he planned to change the name in December because Oilers was used in Houston and does not reflect the team's new home in Nashville. The team is holding a contest in which fans have been invited to guess what name Adams will pick. The winner gets a trip for two to the Super Bowl. ... The NFL has upheld the one-game suspension given to Detroit Lions safety Mark Carrier for spearing Tampa Bay's Brice Hunter on Monday night. Carrier will miss Sunday's game at Chicago. It's the third time in the past two seasons, and fifth time in the last seven years, that Carrier has been cited by the NFL for improperly hitting with his helmet.

BOXING

Nevada boxing authorities will have to wait a little longer to see what a team of psychiatrists has to say about the state of former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson's mind. Reports from a five-day evaluation of the former heavyweight champion still hadn't been sent to the Nevada Athletic Commission offices as of closing time yesterday, four days after they were due. Tyson attorney Jim Jimmerson said he expects to have the documents sent to the commission by Monday at the latest. ... Heavyweight Andrew Golota delighted the first home crowd of his professional career yesterday in Wroclaw, Poland, by crafting a unanimous 10-round decision over aging former champion Tim Witherspoon. Golota improved to 32-3 with 27 knockouts.

AUTO RACING

Bobby Rahal, hoping to make a splash in his last season as a driver, took the provisional pole yesterday in the opening round of time trials for the inaugural Texaco Grand Prix of Houston. Rahal got around the 1.527-mile, 10-turn downtown street circuit in 60.191 seconds, a speed of 91.329 mph. That relegated Greg Moore's 91.069 to the outside of the tentative front row for Sunday's race.

TENNIS

Top-ranked Martina Hingis, bothered by cramps, had one match point before retiring against Patty Schnyder in the semifinals of the Grand Slam Cup yesterday in Munich, Germany. Schnyder won the match at 5-7, 7-5, 5-5 when Hingis retired after 2 hours, 11 minutes. In Sunday's final, Schnyder will meet Venus Williams, who beat Nathalie Tauziat 6-4, 6-0, rallying from a break down in the first set.

LOCAL

The International Association of Approved Basketball Officials (Bd. #30) will hold classes for candidates interested in officiating boys' basketball games. The classes will begin on Oct. 8 and will be held every Tuesday night through Nov. 19 from 7-9 p.m. at Greater New Bedford Regioal Voc-Tech High School in New Bedford. There will be a refresher class on Nov. 24. The classes are under the direction of Paul "Lefty" Duval and the cost is $50. The cost includes a rule book, casebook and other materials needed to pass the Officials' Examination which will be given on Nov. 30. Additional information may be obtained by calling Duval at (508) 679-0402 or by writing him at 162 Shawmut Ave., Fall River, MA 02720. ... The Eastern Athletic Conference is looking for a new girls' basketball commissioner. Interested individuals are asked to submit resumes to Carlin Lynch, Athletic Director, Dartmouth High School, 366 Slocum Road, North Dartmouth, MA. 02717. ... Signups for boys and girls in grades 5-8 interested in playing basketball for St. Julie's Church will be held Tuesday and Wednesday at the CYO Center on County Street. Signups for girls will be held from 5-6:30 p.m. Boys' signups are scheduled for 7:30-9 p.m. For more information, contact Wayne Moreira at 994-7894.

-- Compiled from wire reports